Honestly, could be more sonically and structurally distinct from its previous, but tells a story we've not heard from him yet
Disney-turned-pop star Joshua Bassett follows up single Doppelgänger with less than extraordinary ‘Smoke Slow’, yet continues to prove his talent, competency, and potential as a musician and songwriter.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad song. It just doesn’t stand alone the rest of his songs have, and it doesn’t feel as unique sonically as every other release has so far. The song is quintessentially Joshua Bassett tackling an interesting topic in an interesting way through the mature lens of smoking. It tackles the topic of pining after somebody that you can’t have because they sort of already have someone else. It’s interesting and Josh’s vocals definitely do the topic, emotion, and ideas justice – there’s no doubt about his voice or the emotion.
However, the melody and production just don’t quite have the same impact as the other singles have. It feels very similar sonically to Doppelgänger, and yes you can argue there’s little you can do with acoustic guitar riffs and very little big drum or hugely upbeat production – but honestly, there isn’t much that sticks this uniquely into my brain sonically as Doppelgänger did.
By now you may have noticed that whenever I review a single, the crowning glory is the bridge, and here, this doesn’t disappoint. This is the part of the song that makes me want to play it over and over, and once it’s stuck in my head there is no end.
So honestly, yes I expected much more out of this song as Josh has set a high bar previously, but it isn’t something I would skip in a playlist or easily forget about. Do give it your ear.
‘Smoke Slow’ is out now via Warner Records, and you can watch the music video here:
